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Best Buys In January

January 18th, 2013

Best Buys In January

Who doesn’t love to save money? We will be starting a new series highlighting items that are historically on sale during the month. This will help you plan how to use your gift cards from the holidays, or to plan your major purchases over the next year or two.

For example, if you want a new washer and dryer, but are not ready to buy yet, you can start saving up and purchase a new one next January.

Resources

Here are some links for additional information, and where we found the information provided here.

The Bargains

Carpet and flooring

Most customers in the market for new flooring will pull the trigger in time to have it in place for the holidays. You should find plenty of eager, attentive salespeople to wait on you and be ready to deal, just after the holiday season is over.

Video games

The newest, flashiest games have been on the store shelves for a couple of months already, so stores that high-balled prices during the shopping season will start competing on price, a game you can win.

Suits

As clothing stores prepare to cycle into their warm-weather collections, take advantage of clearances on fall/winter suits. Just watch your diet over the summer, so that the suits will still fit next fall.

Big appliances

After stocking up for the holiday rush, appliance dealers will be eager to convert some of the remaining inventory to cash and clear space on the showroom floor for the newest models. This could be the right time for that new stainless steel fridge or convection oven.

Furniture

It too has its seasons, and many companies release new models in February. Stores with unsold inventory often put some of it on sale to make room on the showroom floor.

Air Conditioning

Boats

Motorcycles

Bedding and bathroom linens

January has been white sale time ever since John Wanamaker of Philadelphia started the trend in Philadelphia in 1878. Many stores will be vying to sell you new sheets, comforters, towels and pillows, at the year’s best prices.

Outdoor gear

Aside from those hearty devotees of winter camping and hunting, in most of the U.S. there are few shoppers in the outdoor gear aisles in January. Look for good prices this month on tents, stoves, backpacks, kayaks, fishing gear and other products designed for the great outdoors.

Wrapping paper, Holiday cards, Decorative Lights, Holiday Decorations

Is there anyone in the U.S. still unaware that January is the time to buy everything you need for next December? Just remember where you store it.

Electronics

Waiting until January to buy electronics is a bit of a gamble; the really hot items may be out of stock, and those put on sale may be less popular. If you can find the item that you really want, at a good price (not the one you might settle for but will never be happy with), jump on it.

The biggest tech trade show in the industry came to a close last week in the cavernous hallways of the Las Vegas Convention Center. And while most gadget fans were glued to their Twitter feeds salivating at the latest news and announcements, we at Dealnews were excited for another reason. For us, CES isn’t just about new product announcements; it’s also the start of a new season of deals. Immediately after the show you see new cuts on last year’s technology, and soon after you’ll begin seeing discounts on the latest gadgets as well.

But how long must you wait before 2013’s most anticipated devices go on sale? To find out, we turned back the clock to CES 2012 and tracked a few product announcements from last year’s show to see how long it took them to make their Dealnews debut.

Laptops and ultrabooks Every year, hundreds of laptops make their glittering debut on the showroom floor of the Las Vegas Convention Center. Last year, HP’s glass-covered 14-inch Spectre ultrabook was among the biggest announcements, commanding a price of $1,400. Four months later, we listed the Sceptre on Dealnews for $1,099, or 22% off. The Spectre dropped in price again in October when we listed it at $999, or 29% off.

Bottom line: Unfortunately, it appears as if the flashy laptop stars of CES take a long time before they receive any discounts, ranging from four to nine months. As a result, penny pinchers might want to bypass trendy CES laptops and instead look for solid deals on last year’s models, many of which will pack similar specs as the newer laptops, albeit in a less-glossy chassis or sans a touch screen.

Houses

Common wisdom tells us that spring is the best time to sell a house, and midwinter is the worst. Therefore, anyone putting their house on the market during the worst selling time must be a “committed seller,” one that might well be willing to compromise on price. Wait just a few months and you might find yourself in a bidding war for the same place.